Paradiso: Ch. 4
CHAPTER IV A Man of War I splashed the cold water across my sweaty, dirt caked face, my eyes dead set on the floating mirror in front of me. The four brick walls that formed the bathroom made me feel crowded and claustrophbic, but it was something I was going to have to put up with for the next few days. I dragged the wool rag over my forehead as I looked around the bathroom of Amun Ramel's house. It was simple gray brick, with steel bits here and there. A sink, toilet, and shower wre all that filled this tiny space, a small cabinet hanging on the wall to contain toiletries. Amun's house was small and bisc, but it was enough for someone who lived on the farm covered outskirts Cairo, Egypt. I walked down the brown, floorboard covered hall of the house until I reached the small, yet satisfying guest room. Inside, I found a small bag of Amrbosia and Nectar, as well as a bottle of water, on the bedside table. The bed was laced with green, silk sheets and mathching pillows. There was a small closet on the left wall, and a tiny television in the corner. An outlet was positioned at the foot of the far right wall, with a window positioned above the bed. I closed the blonds, blocking out the moon's light, and slumped out of my wet pants and my soggy, sand filled shoes. Blisters covered my feet, but they were slowly healing from all the Nectar and Ambrosia I had consumed. Amun had told me that I, unlike many demigods, had the ability to consume more than the usual amount of Nectar and Ambrosia. This, however, was a good thing. I rubbed my bloodshot eyes, sliding under the soft, silk warm covers. As I rested my head on the quilted, fluffy pillows, my eyes grew heavy as I drifted off into a deep, dark sleep... ~ My eyelids peeled open, sprinkles of crust falling off of them as I did so. I turned my tired, tattered body to the right, staring at the gray wall across from me. Sleep had been welcome, but sadly I'd had too little of it. Sliding my legs out from under the covers, I pressed the callused soles of my feet to the cold wooden floor below. The cold didn't bother me, but it did come as quite a wake up call. I walked over to the end table that sat across the room and pulled open one of the doors. Inside were a few pairs of clothes and a bible. I pulled out a pair of sleek, denim jeans and pulled them on. A nice, button down gray shirt came next. Walking out of the room, I headed into the small kitchen where Amun was seated at the table. His helmet was off, his white hair flowing down his neck. I could tell he had just come from the shower, as tiny dropletts of water still hung on his head. His crispy brown eyes were pointed at a holographic feed this morning, the glowing blue images flashing across the air as he watched today's highlights. In his left hand he held a piece of toast and a white, ceramic cup of coffee. "Good morning," I said slowly, rubbing my eyes like I always did. I walked slowly to the white cupboard and pulled out a glass to fill. Drenching it in water, I sat down across from my new friend. "Good morning, Nathan," Amun said, sipping his coffee lightly. "Did you sleep well?" I nodded softly, drinking the water quickly. The ice cold liquid felt good on my throat; not as good as Ambrosia, but good enough. "What're you watching?" I asked, peering at the hologram in front of him. The people and cars raced across the air infront of him, fires and guns being unleashed in a frenzy on the holographic screen. "Just watching the news this morning," Amun said, rubbing his chin. He sighed softly and looked up at me. "The attacks are getting worse, I'm afraid." "What 'attacks'?" I asked, scooting around to the other side of the table to get a better look. I could faintly make out the outline of a building exploding and people being blown to bits, when Amun turned the hologram off. The image dissapeared into thin air with a loud zip! "The Regime has been attacking Cairo for months now," Amun said. "I'm not sure how much our military can take. The casualties have become drastic...I'm afraid this might turn into an all out war." "What's 'the Regime'?" I asked, taking another sip from my almost empty glass. "The Regime," Amun began, downing his cofee and taking a bite of his buttered, wheat toast,"is a gang. They call themselves 'the law', but they're nothing more than street thugs and psychopaths who found the means to aqquire military grade weaponry." "And how did they do that?" I said, my curiosity growing by the second. "This man," Amun said suddenly, flicking his wrist. A red hologram popped up, showing the outline of an adult male with enough scars on his body to last him a century. He was bald, with nothing to show for it but a strip of black, goatee. His eyes glowed a bright, devilish purple and a few symbols were tattooed on his head. "Who is that?" I asked, my eyes wide. "His name is Abbadon the Destroyer," Amun said, glaring deeply at the picture. "Abbadon...the Destroyer? Like...from the bible?" I asked curiously, looking at the man. Amun nodded. "Yes. I am one of the few people fortunate enough to know his alias." "Alias? You mean...the government doesn't even know his ''real ''name?!" I said, surprised and confused. Amun looked at me for a moment then sighed. "Nathan, there are some things that I left from you last night." I stared at Amun, my hands shaking under the table. What if Amun was part of the Regime?! Was he going to trry and kill me. I gripped my hands closed tight, my thumbs burried under my fist. If I was going to act, I would do it fast. "I," Amun began, "am the leader of the Resistance." I sighed heavily, ungripping my fist lightly; what a reflief. "The Resistance?" Amun nodded and zoomed in to the picture. "I've lived in Cairo for years, and will not let this maniac destroy my city. He has come down from Greece and has brought his forces. I assmue that, given the Greek army's size, they pushed him out. Yet they did not realize that he will ''not ''stop until he's conquered a land for his own." I said nothing, remaining silent as I looked at the maniac on the screen. "Is he a demigod?" I asked. "I believe so," Amun said. "I've never seen him in person, however. He sends his soldiers to do all the dirty work. Unlike myself, who fights alongside my men in the field. I would say that he most likely is a demigod, but I wont know until I face off against him." "Is the Resistance big?" I asked, looking at Ramel once more. His eyes reflected the red out of the hologram, and for once he looked evil. Ramel nodded and looked at me, the red dissapearing from his eyes. "It ''is ''quite large. It is comprised of mostly mercenaries and citizens who wish to fight. I've trained them all, and I train the new recruits as required. I do have a few demigods here and there though. Martin Rain is a son of one of those wind gods, I forget. Julia Smokes is a daughter of Electryone, the goddess of the morning. Ah, then there is a my second in command: Thomas Wayland. He is the son of Ares, the god of war." I stopped Amun and held my hand up, "He's what?" "A son of Ares, the god of war," Ramel replied, an eyebrow raised at my question. "...Why?" "A son of war," I said to myself. If I could get a demigod who knew their way around a weapon and a battlefield, I could easily track down the Spitfire. And bonus points if this Thomas kid stayed on my team. "I need him," I thought outloud. "Need who?" Amun laughed. "Thomas? You want Thomas for your adventure?!" I nodded, looking up at the Kagr'uut. "Ha! Good luck with that! Thomas Wayland is as stubborn as a rock! No, a mountain!" Amun laughed. "I don't care," I said, sticking to my decision. "I'm ''going ''to talk to him. Where can I find him, Amun?" Amun chuckled and suddenly his ears perked up, his eyes widening. "Haha...there's no need for you to find him, Nathan." "And why not?" I said, furrowing my brow. "Because he's already here," Amun said nervously, as the door flew open with a bang. "How did you-?" I began, when there was a loud shout from the entryway. "General Ramel!" a deep, young voice screamed from the hall. "They're coming!" Suddenly, a young, tall boy was in the room. He looked around my age 16, yet he was dressed in battle armor. From head to toe he was clad in desert brown camoflauge armor. The only thing I could see was the space between the top and bottom of his helmet. In that opening, I could see a few strands of stringy, black hair and piercing brown eyes. A large, advanced chain rifle was strapped to his back, a combat knife held on his boot. "Nathan, Thomas," Amun said. "Thomas, Nathan." I began to wave, but was cut off shortly by the brute's tone. "Dammit, Ramel. There's not time for your games. Abbadon's coming. And he's bringing hell with him." Amun stood, the table nearly flipping over as he did so. "Abbadon?! He's coming...himself?!" Thomas nodded firmly. "Yes, sir! I've alread warned Martin and Julia. They're assembling their teams across the city. We need to get out of here sir. Are the tunnels open tonight?" Amun nodded, "Of course." Thomas reached in his back pocket and pulled out a glowing, silver and blue box, "There's the key. We need to get out of here." Amun nodded and headed into the living room. He slammed the shimmering, cube shaped object into the ground and it began to dissolve through the floor. Steam rolled off the floorboards, heat and moisture seeping from the cracks. As the cube dissapeared, a large, rectangular hole in the floor appeared. "In," Thomas said, pointing at me. "W-where does it go-?" I began, when suddenly I was pushed forward. I fell down a few flights of steps before I landed on cold, hard earth. I could feel the knot beggining to form on my head as I groaned viciously. "Thomas," I heard Amun call from above. "Please don't push my guests." "He was asking too many questions," Thomas scoffed. "I'm going to grab my gear," Amun said. "Go down and watch the boy. He's essiental to our victory today." "Oh, so I'm a babysitter now?" "Just ''go, ''Tom!" Ramel said, dashing off across the house. I heard the clakn of boot to metal as Thomas suddenly appeared next to me. "Your name is Nathan?" "Wow, I didn't think you'd actually remember," I said, not daring to meet his eyes. "I'm Thomas Wayland, son of Ares," he said, punching me softly on the arm. "Everyone calls me Tom." I shrugged arm away from him, looking down. "Nathan Santiago. Son of Zephyrus...everyone calls me Nate." "Zephyrus?" Tom asked, looking at me. "Martin's father is Zephyrus...did Amun tell you that?" I looked up. There was actually someone else like me in the world?! Another son of Zephyrus...my brother? Shaking my head I looked at Tom. "No, he didn't tell me that." Tom shrugged and suddenly handed me his combat knife. It was sleek and dark, with an intracately carved hilt. "Use that for the time being," Thomas said, looking at me. "Be careful with it. It was a gift from my father." I nodded, "T-thanks, Tom..." Suddenly there was a loud "''clank!" ''from upstairs as Amun appeared in front of us. He was dressed in his battle armor, a massive chain rifle held in his hands. It seemed to hold a million bullets, a giant magazine seeming to stick out of the bottom. Unique, camoflauge coloring had been painted on, and it now looked like a snake. "Meet the Cobra," Amun said, holding up his gone. "She's my beauty." Tom and I both laughed softly as the trapdoor began to close above us. Soon, there was no trace that we had ever gone through the floor. "That'll hold them," Thomas grinned. "Not for long, boy," Amun said, looking forward. "It may fool his men, but Abbadon is smarter than you think. He'll find the door, and he'll bust it open. ''We ''just need to keep moving." We all nodded in unison as Amun pulled a torch out of his backpack. "No computer-activated lights?" I asked, staring at the barbaric, midevil looking object. Amun shook his head. "No. There are some beings who hold the power and technology to trace things such as light and tech. This-" Amun held up the now lit torch"- can not be tracked. Not even by a son of Hephaestus with the Gift of the Inferno." Amun walked forward into what was a long, naturally-made tunnel. "As we get farther down, the heat from the torch should activate the natural Lamp Crystals. Exposure to heat makes them glow bright, after all." I followed behind Amun, with Thomas armed and ready behind us. As we walked farther and farther into the tunnely, there was a loud explosion far behind us. Amun paused, taking baby steps forward and still moving slightly. "What was that?" I whispered. "AMUN RAMEL!" screamed a loud, blood curdling voice. "IT IS TIME FOR YOU, AND YOUR RESISTANCE, TO DIE!" Thomas cursed. "He's here, General. What do we do?" Amun looked from me to Thomas, and back to me. "We run." And with that we took off at break neck speed. Category:Paradiso Category:Bladewood 2.0